Banana Bread is one of our absolute favorite treats. My girls love it and honestly I do too. There is something so comforting about warm banana bread, it just makes a perfect after school snack or homemade gift.
Whenever I pop over to a Starbucks I can usually count on the girls starting to ask for the Banana Bread. They just love it.
I have been playing with various recipes for banana bread for awhile now and finally stumbled across one that we really like and that is very, very close to what we usually get at Starbucks stores.
This one is simple to make, packed with banana and is delicious plain, with nuts or add some chocolate chips for a real treat.
This recipe is actually from Starbucks directly so hopefully you like it as much as we do!
For this recipe you can totally omit the walnuts but they really do add so much flavor. You can always substitute chocolate chips for the walnuts which would be delicious.
*****NOTE: I use a large loaf pan (10 3/4″ long, 5″ wide, 3 1/2″ tall)- if you have a smaller loaf pan, you might divide this into 2 batches or fill your pan 2/3 high and use the remaining batter in a muffin pan. Another option is to bake in a 9×9 dish.
- 2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 1⅛ cup sugar
- ½ cup vegetable or canola oil
- 2 tablespoons buttermilk or milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 3 bananas mashed very well
- ½ cup chopped walnuts (optional)
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- Add flour, baking soda and salt to a small bowl and set aside.
- Mix egg, sugar and oil and stir until well combined
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir well. The mixture will be thick and dry.
- Next add milk, vanilla and bananas and stir until incorporated.
- Mix in walnuts and pour into a loaf pan.
- Cook 50-75 minutes, checking regularly until a knife comes out clean.
Note the success of banana bread depends on bananas. You really want super ripe or slightly brown bananas for the best flavor.
If your bananas are fresh you can place them in a brown paper bag closed tightly for a day or two to help them brown, keep them attached at the stem for faster ripening or if you need them brown right away, place them in a 300 degree oven for 30 minutes and then let cool for 30 minutes. For delicious meals and desserts like these; check out Publix recipes. Be sure to place foil or parchment under the bananas before popping them in the oven as they may leak a tiny bit.
If you want an authentic Starbucks experience, add nuts to the dough and sprinkle on top as well.
So give this recipe and shot and come back and let me know what you think! If you want to freeze this bread, it freezes beautifully. Just let it completely cool, tightly wrap in saran wrap and then pop into a freezer bag.
When you are ready to have the bread, simply pull out of the freezer and let it defrost.
This recipe is slightly adapted from Food.com, based off a recipe released by Starbucks directly at a media event.
And here are a few other recipes you might enjoy:
Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls – perfect for Christmas morning!
Charlene says
You can Elizabeth. If I use a ceramic dish I don’t bother. Metal yes.
Sue Creehan says
You nailed this recipe! I made it for the first time last week and LOVED it! I plan on making it again today and take it to my neighbor as a thank you gift for shoveling my sidewalk and driveway this past Sunday!
I freeze my bananas when they turn brown and I don’t have a plan to use them. Have you ever defrosted bananas and then used them in this recipe?
Charlene says
Hi Sue. I love this banana bread too. So good! Yes I absolutely have. Should be fine to do.
Valerie says
I’ve made a lot of banana bread over the years using a lot of different recipes and I think this was the best I’ve ever had! So moist and flavorful, glad that I added walnuts as suggested as it added a nice textural component to the tender bread. My oven required a 72 minute bake and it was perfect. Thank you so much for sharing this!
Charlene says
Whoo hoo! Thanks Valerie! So happy you enjoyed it.
Fredrika says
I made this recipe last week and it was a hit in my house! We buy a ton of bananas and never knew what to do with the rest but since I found this recipe I’ll be making a lot of banana bread from now on. Plus I save money when I take a trip to Starbucks.
Charlene says
Yay! happy to hear that Fredrika.
Rhonda says
Three bananas, but what size bananas or do you have the equivalent in cup measurements, once mashed? Thanks.
Kaley says
I’d like to make these as muffins, do you suggest? If so, temp and cooking time? Thanks! We love this as bread but kids want muffins to pop out of the freezer.
Delene says
I made this recipe yesterday and my husband said it was the best banana bread he has ever eaten. We have been married 30 years and I make banana bread at least once every month!
Yanni says
I’ve made this at least 15x during quarantine. Everyone loves it! I add a 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/2 cup walnuts. It tastes amazing!
Linda says
This is my go to recipe!! Family loves it! I’ve made it with chocolate chips, nuts and just plain. All of them turned out delicious! Thank you for your recipe!!
Charlene says
Yay! Happy to hear that Linda.
Charlene says
I need to try a little cinnamon next time too Yanni. I bet that is wonderful.
Charlene says
Wow. Thank you for sharing Delene- made my day 🙂
Charlene says
Kaley- I do muffins sometimes and I need to pay attention to how long they cook. I can’t remember off the top of my head but just a guess is to start checking them at 15 min.
Erina says
This is better than Starbucks Banana Bread. I just did a taste test. This recipe is miles better. Yum! The only advantage of going to Starbucks is that you can stop at one piece. Thank you!
Charlene says
Oh my gosh what a lovely thing to say. Thanks Erina :). I love the Starbucks bread but to me it has a slight oily texture and flavor that I don’t get from this fresh baked bread.
Jill says
Love this recipe!! I swapped the one egg for 1/4 cup of unsweetened applesauce (egg allergy) and of course added walnuts!! Yummy! My girls gobbled it up when they got home from school!
Nicole says
I made this recipe and it was soo yummy! I had to use almond milk instead of milk and it was still really good! I made muffins and cooked at 325 for about 27 minutes!
Barb says
I have made this banana bread many times and love it! Right now I am out of walnuts and was thinking of adding raisins. Are there any adjustments I should make? Thank you!
Danaya says
This came out great! I had to cook longer than the suggested time but it tastes delicious. Thanks for sharing this recipe. I will definitely be making again!
Charlene says
Barb I haven’t tried raisins but I can’t imagine there would be any adjustments. Let us know how it turns out 🙂
Charlene says
Thanks for letting us know Nicole. I use Almond Milk in my coffee but haven’t tried it for this recipe.
Mary Adey says
Hi. Have all the ingredients to make your lovely banana bread. Are you using a 9 x5 loaf pan? Thanks for the recipe.
Mary
Mary Adey says
Sorry Charlene. I’ve gone back to older posts and see that a 9 x 5 tin is fine. I’ll let you know how it comes out, but by previous comments, this will be a winner!
Mary
Irene says
This turned out fantastic !
I added an extra banana and left it in 15 min longer with foil on top
Def will be a regular recipe in this house !
Janet says
Thanks for the great recipe! I made it with gluten free flour, s my daughter could enjoy it too.
It is so good, my daughter can’t get enough of it. I’m taking more to her tomorrow!!
It’s on my list to make it again and again
Charlene says
Glad the gluten free flour worked out well and so happy you found a great treat for your daughter. 🙂
Chandra says
Very good recipe tastes just like Starbucks! I love that it’s not too sweet it’s just right! Definitely add the walnuts yum!!
Charlene says
Yay so happy you liked it Chandra.
Sue Spahn says
This is the 2nd weekend in a row that my husband requested this banana bread recipe. He even went out to get the banana and put them in a paper bag so they were ready for the bread. Got love him.
Emily says
I started off with 50 mins as suggested, I checked it and it wasn’t done so I added 8 more mins. Checked again and it was good so I took it out and let it cool. It’s over cooked unfortunately, but the flavor is delicious. I suggest watching it more closely or doing 2-3 minute intervals after the 50 mins. Great flavor and I love the crispy edges.
Joan Ankenbauer says
I made these in to muffins, sprinkled a mixture of cinnamon and sugar on top before baking. I had to let them bake for 35-40 minutes.
Charlene says
Yay! Happy to hear that Sue. :).
Charlene says
That sounds really good Joan- thanks for sharing the baking time.
Charlene says
Glad you liked it Emily 🙂
Kathryn says
I make this often using gluten free flour (either King Arthur Measure for Measure or Bob’s Redmill 1 to 1). It’s so good! I also cut the sugar back to 3/4 cup.
Gina says
I baked this recipe many times and it’s the best banana bread ever. My son loves it and the process is easy to do. I really recommend it!
Charlene says
Yay! Happy to hear that Gina.
Valerie G says
Best ever banana bread recipe!! I think the kids let the bananas get over ripe so I’ll make this one. It’s easy and soooo good!!!
Debra J Shevelin says
The only banana bread I make now, thank you for such a delicious recipe!!!
Charlene says
I made it yesterday too Debra and it only lasted one day 🙂
Charlene says
Yay for overripe bananas 🙂
Czarina says
Great recipe! I added some cinnamon and chopped pecans. Thanks for sharing!
Samantha says
How many calories per slice do you think this might be? Tried looking and maybe I missed it.
Brenda Bates says
This is the best banana bread recipe! My husband doesn’t like any chunks in his banana bread so I put the bananas, milk, oil, egg and vanilla in my magic bullet and make sure everything is smooth before adding it to the rest of the ingredients…this is the only recipe we make because it is that good ..thanks for a great recipe.
Alexia says
Kind of disappointed. I wish you said to split batter into 2 loaf pans- I put it all in one and it is exploding in my oven ♀️ This bread also is not as sweet as Starbucks. I think next time I will use 2 full cups of sugar and definitely split between two loaf pans.
Carol Lacey says
Hi! Tried this today for my boyfriend. I will have to let you know. It went together easy enough but took almost an hour and a half to bake.
Kim says
Does this bread freeze well? Can you freeze batter to bake later, or definitely bake (and slice?) before freezing? Also we sometimes have bananas beyond ripe before I’m ready for bread. Do you recommend freezing the bananas or making the bread instead and freezing it?